


Work For It

by swcnsmagic



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Mild Angst, Roommates, Slow Burn, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-10
Updated: 2017-05-10
Packaged: 2018-10-30 11:44:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10876089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swcnsmagic/pseuds/swcnsmagic
Summary: In her senior year of college, criminal law major Emma Swan runs into an issue with her roommate. The replacement happens to be marine biology enthusiast Killian Jones. Emma's heart has only ever been set on becoming one of Boston's finest lawyers, but the heart wants what it wants — and it's not just the job.





	Work For It

**Author's Note:**

> Following the news that Jen won't be returning if a season 7 goes ahead, (god, please NO) I've decided to start a multi chapter fic. It's my first attempt, but I hope you enjoy. I have no clue how long I plan to make this, so I'm playing it by ear. Without further ado, here is the first chapter!

“What the fuck do you mean, there’s been a mix up with dorm rooms?” Emma fumed.

“I mean, Emma, that you aren’t sharing with Ruby like you first thought,” Mary Margaret said calmly, trying (and ultimately failing) to diffuse the fire that was Emma Swan.

“Then who the hell am I tolerating for the rest of the year?”

“He’s one of mine and David’s old friends.”

“You’re kidding, right? Tell me you’re kidding when you say _he_ , Mary Margaret,” Emma groaned.

There was a moment of silence, in which Mary Margaret did nothing but pull an apologetic face.

“Great. At least tell me he’s some sort of nerd who keeps to himself and won’t bother me?” Emma was grasping at straws now. She allowed very few guys into her life, and even then, the process of becoming friends with them was one closer to a job interview than one where you got to know the other easily. David, Victor, Robin and Graham were the exceptions. To have no choice in whether she could make friends with this guy or not was something Emma wasn’t all too pleased about.

“Actually, I’m afraid he’s quite the opposite,” Mary Margaret sighed apologetically. “His name is Killian Jones.”

“He already sounds like a pompous ass,” Emma scoffed.

“He kind of is a pompous ass,” her friend laughed lightly. “Cocky, self-assured, loves an innuendo, very witty. That’s about Killian.”

“And you expect me to what, just _survive_ the rest of college until we graduate?”

“If there’s anyone who can tolerate him and put him in his place, Emma, it’s you,” Mary Margaret said as a matter-of-factly.

This was _not_ , repeat _not_ , what Emma had been expecting for her senior year of college. She’d been expecting a repeat of freshman and sophomore years, where she roomed with her friend Ruby Lucas. But since she started dating medical student Victor Whale, apparently that plan was out of the window.

Mary Margaret went on to explain that Killian was transferring over from England to complete his final year of college, too. He was studying marine biology, she learned. Had wanted it since he was a child.

“What kind of kid wants to grow up to be a marine biologist?” Emma, once again, scoffed.

“You’ll learn that Killian Jones isn’t a typical person,” Mary Margaret said simply.

"As long as he doesn't cause too much shit for me, I guess I'll manage," she grumbled.

"That's the spirit, Emma!" Mary Margaret said cheerily.

Emma inwardly groaned at her friend's happiness. She and David were the definitions of _happy_ and _optimistic_ and, if she were to be frank, _infatuated_.

She was a stark contrast to the pair. Actually, Emma was the complete opposite to not only her two best friends, but to the rest of the small group entirely. While everyone else was easy going, happy to socialise and open up to people, Emma was closed-off. She had walls higher than anyone thought was possible, running from the slightest sign of romance or anything else that scared the hell out of her.

Her experience with letting people in had only ever ended disastrously.

Which is why she now focused all her energy into graduating from college and going straight for an internship at _Gold & Co_, one of the biggest law firms Boston had to offer. She knew it was a long shot, but Emma was anything but determined to get to where she wanted to be.

Mary Margaret's voice broke Emma from her trance. "Emma, Killian's going to be here in five minutes."

"I can't wait," Emma responded with fake enthusiasm.

"He's not all that bad, you know. He's been through his fair share of rough starts," said Mary Margaret gently. "You might like him."

Rolling her eyes, Emma simply nodded. "That's probably not going to happen, and you know it."

Before her friend had a chance to respond, a knock at the door sounded sharply. "That'll be Killian and David," Mary Margaret said, before walking to the door and unlocking it.

David greeted his girlfriend first, before stepping aside to allow Killian to exchange pleasantries with Mary Margaret.

Her friend had failed to mention just how damn _attractive_ this man was.

A well-sculpted jawline was covered with a layer of red-tinged scruff, while the hair on his head was much darker, almost raven black. His eyes, holy _shit_ , his eyes, were an astounding shade of blue, one that reminded Emma of the sea on a nicer day.

Those eyes that had struck Emma instantly quickly met hers, and she almost choked on air. A small smirk adorned his lips, but not words fell from them yet. Nor did he move closer towards her.

"Emma, this is Killian. Killian, this is Emma," David coughed and broke the silence that had apparantly fallen upon the four of them. Killian nodded towards his friend and started walking towards her. She did the same, meeting him in the middle for a handshake.

"Pleasure to meet you, Swan. Dave and Mary Margaret have said a lot about you," he said, with that damn smirk of his again.

And damn again, that fucking accent.

Taken aback by this revelation, Emma raised an eyebrow towards the pair stood in the doorway.

"Is that so, huh?" They simply shrugged.

It was only then when Emma realised that their hands were still grasping each other's, and she quickly yanked it away.

"Killian, should we start getting your stuff moved in here?" came Mary Margaret's voice.

Killian turned to face her, the smirk replaced with an actual smile. "That would be a start."

"Can you lend a hand, Emma? It'll go faster with the four of us helping," David asked.

"How much stuff do you have?" Emma immediately asked Killian. Surely this guy wasn't about to take up more than half of the space with his marine biology nonsense, right? Emma needed her own space. In any and all aspects of life.

"From what I can see, love, it's not even half of what you have," he chuckled lightly.

"Good to know."

In fairness, it did only take the group about 20 minutes to move all of Killian's boxes into the reasonably-sized college dorm.

"Mary Margaret and I need to be going, Ems," David said abruptly. "We've got some stuff to sort out at our own room."

"Okay. See you tonight for drinks?" Emma asked.

"We're still up for it if you are," David confirmed. "Killian, you should come too," he added swiftly.

The invite seemed to shock him slightly, as he remained silent for a few beats. "I wouldn't want to intrude, mate," he said politely.

"Come on, Killian! We haven't seen you properly in years. The least you could do is come out with us tonight," Mary Margaret chimed in.

Pondering for a few more seconds, he nodded. "What time were you planning for?"

"Around 7. We'll pick the two of you up?" David confirmed.

Emma finally engaged in the conversation again. "Sounds perfect. See you tonight, you two."

"Bye, Emma," said Mary Margaret before shutting the door behind her.

And leaving her alone with Killian Jones.

"So, Swan, it seems that we're now roommates."

"Swan?" she blurted out. No one ever called her Swan. It was Emma. No nicknames, just plain and simply Emma.

"Your surname is Swan, right? That's what David and Mary Margaret said," he responded.

"It is. But no one calls me that," she shrugged.

"Would you like me to stop? I just thought it suited you, is all."

Maybe Emma should retract the statement about Killian being a pompous ass before she met him. He didn't seem to be showing any signs, yet.

"It's fine. I guess it's different, is all. I've never really had a nickname," she explained.

"I like it."

That earned him a smile. An actual, real smile. Which was rare when it came to Emma.

"Do you need help unpacking?" she asked quickly, before the silence became uncomfortable.

"It's quite alright, Swan. I'm sure you have unpacking of your own to do," he said with a smile.

"I'm pretty much done, but I'll be in my room if you need help. Just shout."

"Would you care to tell me which room is mine?"

"Oh! Shit, sorry. Yours is end of the hall, on the right."

"Thanks, love," he said before picking up the nearest box and walking promptly down the hallway.

Emma let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding so tightly, but the lingering pain in her chest told her that it had been there for a while. She wasn't sure why he'd already managed to affect her so much; possibly because he was so handsome, she mused. But she shook the thought instantly. Emma couldn't become involved romantically with Killian Jones. It was a preposterous thought. And a dangerous one.

 

6:30pm rolled around, and Killian knocked on Emma's door. "Yeah?" she called. The door opened a fraction, and Killian's head peaked around.

"Are you going to require the bathroom before we go, Swan?"

"No, I'm good. It's all yours. Thanks for asking, though." It was a gesture Emma genuinely appreciated. She found herself once again rethinking the whole 'pompous ass' statement.

"I endeavour to be the best roommate you can have, lass," he winked, before disappearing.

The wink shouldn't have made her stomach flip. But it did.

 

A half hour later, and David and Mary Margaret were at their door waiting to leave. "Come on, Emma! We said seven!" David sighed, obviously exasperated.

"I couldn't find my shoe!" she protested, but knowing that David was only teasing. He had played the role of a big brother to her over the past few years, something Emma had never had growing up.

"Ah, that was my fault, I'm afraid," Killian said with a chuckle. "Sorry to say that one of my boxes was hiding it."

"Alright, let's go already," David laughed back.

They went to the bar that Emma, Mary Margaret and David had been going to since they started college, using fake IDs like any other student did at that age. It was a 10 minute walk from campus, and named the Rabbit Hole. This area of Boston had a few quirks, this bar being one of them.

It was busy for a Saturday evening, considering the bar wasn't exactly the most reputable of places. But the drinks were reasonably priced and there was a friendly atmosphere to it, which was probably what drew most people to it. The group found a table tucked away in the corner, and David announced the first round was on him.

"I'll have a rum please, mate," came Killian's voice.

"Just a red wine for me, thanks," asked Emma. David nodded and went up to the bar to order the round.

"So, Killian, how does it feel to be back in the States?" Mary Margaret asked quickly. Killian wasn't surprised by the question, or if he was, he didn't show it.

"It feels good, I suppose. It's not Maine, granted, but Boston seems nice enough."

"Emma's the one to ask about Boston. Been here longer than any of us."

"Is that so?"

Emma nodded, shooting a quick glance at her friend, who was only smiling in response. "I've lived here for about 5 years."

"And how well do you know the city?" Killian inquired. Emma had to give it to him, he actually seemed interested.

"I know it well enough, I suppose. It's a big city."

"Maybe you could show him around sometime," Mary Margaret suggested. Shooting yet another glance, her friend shrugged at her.

"I might just ask you to do that, you know," Killian smiled.

"I'm a busy person, so chances are it won't be for a while. If ever," Emma said plainly. At that moment, David returned with a tray full of drinks for them all. Emma grabbed her wine instantly, taking a large sip and settling back in her seat a little.

"I needed this," she sighed.

"Ems, the semester hasn't even technically started," David pointed out.

"I'm majoring in criminal law. Let me have this," she whined. Beside her, Killian chuckled.

"Criminal law, Swan? Somehow, I'm not surprised."

"You're not?" He shook his head. "You just seem the type of person, is all."

Satisfied with his answer, Emma smiled back at him.

The night went on, more pleasantries exchanged between them all. Killian talked about how he wanted to work for a research company when he graduated. Mary Margaret explained that she wanted to get a job as a high school teacher at one of the more run-down schools in Boston. She said she wanted to show kids that their backgrounds didn't matter at school. David was aiming to become a sports coach at the same school Mary Margaret wanted to teach at. For all her walls, Emma found it surprisingly easy to talk to Killian about her ambitions of becoming a big-shot lawyer some day. He nodded in understanding when she spoke of knowing that it was unlikely, but she wanted it so badly she couldn't give up.

 

As 11pm crept up on them, the group decided they would all head back. None of them were drunk; as David had said, it wasn't even the start of the semester. David and Mary Margaret were in a separate building to Emma and Killian, so they parted ways and arranged to see each other for lunch on Monday, when classes started up again. As they both entered their dorm, they shrugged their coats off and hung them on the coat rack.

"I hope I didn't intrude tonight, Swan," Killian said quietly.

"Why would you think that?"

He shrugged again. "They're more your friends than mine. I haven't seen them in a while."

She laughed a bit at that. "They're still your friends. You didn't intrude."

"If you say so, lass."

Before she could respond, a yawn crept up on her. "I think I'm gonna go to bed now. Do you mind if I use the bathroom first?"

"Not at all. Goodnight, Swan."

"Night, Killian," she said before walking down the hallway.

After settling into bed, Emma reflected on what Mary Margaret had told Emma before she met Killian. It was almost as if she was talking about someone else entirely. Killian didn't immediately strike her as overly cocky, but maybe that would change as time went on.

Cocky and self-assured she was more than able of handling. All it took was a bit of sarcasm and wit to put them in their place. But so far, he'd been soft spoken and friendly with her, which only had Emma even more wary of him.

For now, though, all Emma could do was sleep. She'd think about it tomorrow.

**Author's Note:**

> So, first chapter is done. What did you think?  
> I'm not sure how regularly I'll be able to update in the coming weeks, thought. I have exams running from next week until the middle of June, so I'll be busy, but I promise to update as much as I can.


End file.
